Rail-joint.



J. S. MERRITT a H. B. COBURN RAIL JOINT. APPLICATION FILED JUNE so. 190e Patented A101220, 1909 l I i .w1 e anon; Ms

' of construction and j same are held rigidly 'bodying the present improvements.

NiTED STATES PATENT FF1CE- "JACOB s. MERRITT AND HENRY. B. Coenen, or covINe'roN, VIRGINIA.

nein-Jouir.'

Patented apra 2o, 19Go.

Application nled June 30, 1908'. Serial No. -aLl.

To all 'whom it may concern:

Be it known that we, JACOB and HNRY B. CoBUnN, citizens of the United States, residing at Covington, in the county of Alleghany'and State of Vir inia, have invented a new and useful Railoint, ofwhich the following is a specification.

This invention relates to railjoints and its object is to provide a simple device of this character which dispenses with the use of bolts and similar fastening devices and which operates to automatically grip the rails when subjected to a load so that displacement of the rails is revented and the wlli-ile the cars are passing over. them.

Another object is to provide arail joint including fish lates having integral means A for engaging t e rails.

A furt er object is to provide novel means for tying the parts of the joint together.

-W1tl1 these and other objects in View the invention consists of cert-ain novel features combinations of parts which will be hereinafter more fully described and pointed out in the claims.

In the accompanying drawings is shown the preferred f orin of the invention. In said drawingszFigurel is a vertical transverse section through a railjoint eni- Fig. l2

yis a section on line A-B, Fi 1. Fig. 3 is aperspective view of one ofyt ie members of Referring to the figures by characters of reierence, 1 and 2 designate oppositely disposed# fish plates, each being located longitudinally upon .the upper portion of a flange 3 which overhangs the base 4 of a chair. This base is designed to extend under a rail 5 and` when it is in this osition the iiange 3 extends over one ot' the ase flanges of the rail so that the iish plate is enabled to close to the webof the rail and between the head 4and base iiangel thereof. The base-l has its upper face inclined downwardly from its free longitudinal edge toward its point of juncture with the flange 3, and the bottom face of said base is correspondingly inclined. Each lfish plate has an integral stud G extending from the inner face thereot` adjacent one end.

A combined brace and bridge plate is designed .to be .used in connection with the chairs and consists of a metal strip or bar having a jaw 8 at cach endf, said jaws be.-

- adjoining When it is desired to connect two rails by rest ing spaced apart a distance equal to the normal distance between the outermost faces of'thechairs. As shown' in Fig. has its gripping face preferab y curve indicated at 9 yso as to firmly engage the portion of the chair.

means of the joint herein described one of the fish plates is placed at each side ofthe meeting ends of the rails so that the base iianges of said rails will rest upon the elevated adjoining edge portions of the bases 'Ll and will proj-ect under the anges 3. The

stud 6 oi one of the fish plates will thus project into an opening iormed in one of the rails while -thecorrcsponding lstud of the other fish plate will project into a similar opening in the other rail. The bar 7 is then placed under the two chairs and the jaws slipped longitudinally onto theouter vit'aces thereof. Thesejaws serve to prevent the two chairs from moving a art more than a pre-determined distance. OEoviously when the rails are subjected to the weight of a car they will press downward on the elevated edge )ortions of the bases 1 and the chairs will t us be caused to swing with the 'aws S as fulcrums. Fish 'plates 1 and 2 will be pressed tightly upon opposite faces of the rails, It will be seen that this gri ping .action will increase in proportion to t e weight to which the rails are subjected. As the studs 6 project into ate to prevent the rails from being dra-wn apart too far.

It will be seen that a joint such as herein described is very sim le, durable, and eicient, can be readily p aced in position, and inasmuch as no bolts or similar fastening devices are employed it is practically i1n formed in the ends of the bar 7 for the reception of spikes whereby the burcan be secured to' a tie.

Importance `is attached to the fact that the fish plates 1 and 2 do 'not interfere with the expansion and cgintraction of the rails but'niove with the respective rails and between the jaws without, hofwever, releasing the rails.

What is claimed is:

l. Arail joint comprising bases inclined upwardly toward'each other, rail-engaging j, (hinges overhanging and integral with the bases, {ish-plates upstanding from the iianges, means upon one of the Fish-plates for positively engaging e raii there-between, means upon the other ish-piate for positively engaging a second rai there-between, and means for hoiding'the bases against lateral movement.

:LA rail joint comprising basesinoined Vvupemrdiytoiifard each other, anges overhanging and integr-ai with the "bases, fishplates .upon the anges, a stud upon' one of the plates for lengaging a i'sil betivifeenthe plates, a stud upon the-othei'plte for engaging a second mii betweenthe plates, and

means embracin the bases ori'holdinw themin a predetermined position.

saisie?? 3. rthe Combination with rails; of depressible supports therefor; fish-plates movable with said supports and actuated thereby to clamp the rails, a stud Carried by/one of the fish-plates for engaging one of the rails, a stud carried by the other {ish-plate for engaging the other rail, and mea-ns for holding the supports against lateral movement. In testimony that We claim the foregoing as our own, We have hereto affixed our signatures in the presence of tWo Witnesses.

" JACOB S. MERRITT.

r l i i i Vtnesses C. B. CUsHrNG, Tiros. B. MCCALEB.

HENRY B. ooBUnN,` 

